


And I Can See It All (In My Mind)

by ladyofdecember



Category: Community (TV)
Genre: Autumn, Awkward Romance, Coffee Shops, Daydreaming, Fireplaces, Hot Chocolate, M/M, Mutual Pining, Skiing, Snow
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-26
Updated: 2019-10-26
Packaged: 2021-01-03 23:41:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,979
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21187931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladyofdecember/pseuds/ladyofdecember
Summary: Abed's acting weird (again) and Troy is worried about what it means for the two of them.





	And I Can See It All (In My Mind)

**Author's Note:**

> This is a continuation of my headcanon that Abed's constantly daydreaming up Hallmark movie romance plots in his head. XD
> 
> ...
> 
> "And I can still see it all (in my mind)  
All of you, all of me (intertwined)  
I once believed love would be (black and white)  
But it's golden (golden)  
And I can still see it all (in my head)"  
-Daylight by Taylor Swift

Abed was certain of very few things in life, least of all his relationship with one Troy Barnes. But if he had learned nothing over their past few years together, it was that Troy was loyal to him and would stick by him through thick and thin.

Not really entirely convinced that his outlook on the world and reality was all that healthy, Abed had gotten used to the feelings of being slightly detached from the world. It wasn't alarming to him nor something he really felt like he needed to "fix". After all, Troy never made a big deal of it, nor Annie, so it must be okay, right? 

Looking over at Troy now, Abed began to wonder just what his life would look like had they never met.

Troy sat on the far end of the couch staring down at his phone silently. He seemed so tuned in to whatever he was doing and so focused that when Abed abruptly got up from his seat, the man didn't even look up.

Walking in to the kitchen, Abed's thoughts began to buzz with the familiar worry that Troy was somehow bored by his presence and/or annoyed by their choice of activity. Today they were simply lazing around the apartment, no plans to speak of, unless you count Abed's plans to microwave some buttered noodles later.

Ducking his head in the fridge in search of something, Abed spotted and retrieved a block of cheddar cheese from the middle shelf. He set about slicing the cheese into tiny little squares and arranging them on a colorful plate. He then grabbed a box of saltine crackers from the cabinet below. Delicately, he arranged the pieces on the plate before him until he was satisfied with their look.

A dignified snack for dignified people, Abed nodded to himself.

Upon returning back to the living room, Abed presented the cracker and cheese plate to his friend. "Hungry?" He chirped with a twitchy smile, an expression not lost on Troy at all.

He chuckled in confusion as he stared up at the man holding the plate before him. "Uh... sure? Uh... what is this?"

Abruptly, Abed sat down beside him and set the plate on the small coffee table. "Snacks. Adult snacks. The kind of thing a grown man like you would prefer over say, buttered noodles or Lucky Charms.”

“But I like Lucky Charms... “ Troy pouted, a little disappointed his roommate had passed on the idea of bringing out cereal for them. Still, he eyed the food before them and reached over to make a cracker and cheese sandwich.

Abed watched him quietly, his eyes following his every move until Troy stared back at him. “Aren't... you going to have some?” 

'He must think it's poisoned.' Abed mused.

'Is this poisoned?' Troy wondered, his eyes going wide.

Abed chuckled and reached over to make his own cracker and cheese sandwich and satisfied, Troy began to eat his own.

The two sat in silence for a bit, the sounds of chewing filling the living room as neither really had anything to say. Finally, Abed swallowed his food and turned to his roommate abruptly. “Troy, are you unhappy?”

Choking a bit on the crackers, Troy recovered and reached for his Mountain Dew on the table, drinking a bit before responding. “What? Why would you even ask that?”

“I don't know. You just seem... disinterested. I thought maybe I should spruce things up a bit around here. Maybe add a dog?”

Troy stared at his friend, not exactly lost in his thought process and used to the random skips in logic but still taken back a bit. “Um, uh... what kind of dog, though?”

“Hmm. Chihuahua?” 

“Ooh. That's a hard no, though.”

Abed thought again. “French poodle?”

“Why do we have to get a dog at all? They're kinda... creepy.”

Intrigued by the comment, Abed gave him a strange look. “You're afraid of dogs?”

Troy sputtered. “Uh, no! I'm not... afraid of dogs. I just... think they're not for me.”

“Huh.” Abed wouldn't quit staring.

“Stop looking at me like that!” Troy began stuffing his face with the crackers and cheese.

Abed cocked his head to the side thoughtfully. “You didn't correct me though so that means there's a bit of truth to my hypothesis.”

“What?! No!” Troy tried to state but ended up choking on the crackers again.

Twice in a two minute period, Abed thought to himself, that's another point in Troy's endearing category.

Guzzling more of his Mountain Dew down, he stared hard at his friend, trying to seek out the truth of the matter. “I'm not unhappy. Are... are you?” He eyed him worriedly as Abed just shrugged and grabbed more cheese.

Swallowing nervously, Troy drummed his fingers on the arm rest of the sofa.

Eating more of the cheese and crackers, Abed let his mind roam until he thought of something. Cocking his head to the left, he began imagining a perfect autumn day.

…

Standing in the middle of a corn maze, Abed stared up at the pretty, blue, cloudless sky above him. He was surrounded by lots and lots of ears of corn, the sounds of giggling children echoed from nearby. As he turned to walk out of the maze, he spotted Troy nearby standing at the pumpkin patch.

The man turned to give him a huge grin as he pointed out the tiny little baby pumpkins all lined up in a row. Abed gave him a small smile and brought up his arm to squeeze the other's affectionately.

Together they began to search for the perfect pumpkins to carve together back at their place. They searched for what seemed like hours before finding just what they were looking for.

Abed leaned in close to Troy, intent on pressing a kiss to the man's forehead.

…

“Hello? Anyone there?” Troy asked, a look of concern on his face as Abed blinked a few times and came back to reality.

“Oh, uh, sorry. Got lost in my head.” He shrugged and continued picking up pieces of cheese to eat.

“Uh, okay. I was just saying that... uh... maybe we should go do something, you know, instead of staying here all cooped up?”

Abed nodded. “I was just thinking the same thing. Autumn ideas, like pumpkin patches and corn maze and apple picking and... “ He trailed off to himself as if calculating something.

Troy squinted at his roommate in confusion. “Uh... what?”

The man turned to him and gripped both of his shoulders tightly. “I have an idea!”

...

A rolling gust of wind picked up, scattering various orange hued leaves across the pavement next to him. They echoed a rough, skidding noise as they skipped across the blacktop.

Abed shoved his hands deeper in his pockets and pulled the loose, dark gray trench coat closer around him. The chilly air was beginning to dip lower in temperature as the sun moved closer down to the horizon and he wondered if maybe they should just head back to their apartment.

No. This was important. Change. Variety. They needed to shake things up.

Abed turned back towards Troy who was jogging to catch up with him as they turned to head towards the cafe before them. He smiled slightly as Troy opened the door for him and they both ducked inside the warm building.

...

The sound of the crackling fire before them sounded pleasant in an otherwise uncomfortably awkward room. Abed sat in one of the arm chairs of the coffee shop just staring pointedly at it and Troy sensed the man's mind was somewhere else. He was doing that look that signified a daydream was occurring. Troy had known him far too long to not have picked up on little quirks here and there.

Inside Abed's mind, he had dreamed up a snow covered landscape, a picturesque ski resort with rolling hills of pillowy white and various evergreens as far as the eye could see.

And there, standing just on the side of the cabin's porch was Troy, smiling happily at him as he bounded forward towards him. As they grew closer, they embraced tightly, Abed never surer of any warm feeling than this one, here and now.

As they broke apart, he looked up into Troy's chocolate brown eyes unafraid and leaned up on his tippy-toes to kiss the man soundly on the lips. Troy kissed back, coming to rest his gentle hands on the back of Abed's arms as he pulled him in closer.

"Wow." Was all he could say as they broke apart, feeling as though he may burst from the happiness.

Troy gave him a warm smile and gestured out at the hills before them. "Well, should we head out?"

It was then that Abed noticed they were both dressed in the proper outfits for their chosen activity, skiing. 

He chuckled easily, as though he had forgotten their entire reason for traveling to the resort. "Yes. Let's."

And with that, the two pushed off from the top of the hill, each skiing down the slope with skill and ease.

...

"Abed. Abed. Uh... hello?"

Troy had been trying and trying to get the man's attention as he sat before him. He was beginning to wonder if spilling hot cocoa on him might be the only answer. Then again no, that would be mean.

Luckily, Abed quickly came out of it and blinked in confusion at him. "What did you say? Sorry, I was in my own head."

"Yeah, you do that a lot lately." Troy grumbled, shifting in his seat and staring out at the fireplace, unsure of what to make Abed's behavior lately. Did he even like hanging out with him? What was his deal?

Abed noticed the displeasure on his face and the way he seemed to be sinking back into the couch cushions. He took in the subtle shift in the air and realizing Troy was obviously upset with him, got up to move and sit beside him.

"You're mad at me." He said matter-of-factly.

"No I'm not." Came Troy's sharp reply and then a quieter. "Well... maybe a little."

Peering into Troy's eyes, Abed gave him an amused smile as he placed his hand over the other's. "Guess I've been kind of daydreaming a lot lately. I'm sorry. It's not like the daydreams are better than reality. My mind just does it." He looked down at the table before them. "I don't know why."

Troy seemed to be breathing more shallow, his eyes constantly flicking between their hands touching and Abed's face and then back. He swallowed nervously as Abed continued, wondering where this was going.

"They could never be better than reality because you're actually here instead of just being a daydream." Abed smiled and glanced back at him adoringly.

Troy seemed taken back for a minute. "R-really? Wait... you think, I mean, you daydream about me?"

"Yeah." The man said with a shrug and a nonchalance, all at once removing his hand from Troy's to scoop up his half empty mug. Downing it all in one gulp, he got to his feet and grabbed Troy's empty mug as well. "Want another one?" 

Troy stared up at Abed's suddenly confident smile as he stared down at him. He nodded quietly and watched as his friend walked away to the barista up front.

Letting the man's revelation pass through his mind, Troy slowly smiled to himself, realizing just how important Abed seemed to think he was. Maybe they did have something going between them. Maybe it wasn't all in his head.

They weren't unhappy, they weren't exactly together. He honestly didn't know what they were. But, one thing was for sure, they definitely were... something.

He smiled as he looked back over his shoulder at Abed ordering at the counter, feeling giddy inside at the revelation.


End file.
